State Of La. v. Jones
| Decision Date | 11 August 2010 |
| Docket Number | No. 40-970,No. 45,429-KA,45,429-KA,40-970 |
| Parties | STATE OF LOUISIANA Appellee v. LENTONE JONES Appellant |
| Court | Court of Appeal of Louisiana — District of US |
LOUISIANA APPELLATE PROJECT By: W. Jarred Franklin, Counsel for Appellant
JONATHAN M. STEWART District Attorney HUBERT RUSSELL DAVIS Assistant District Attorney, Counsel for Appellee
Appealed from the Second Judicial District Court for the Parish of Bienville
Before BROWN, STEWART and MOORE, JJ.
Lentone Jones was indicted for the second degree murder of LeJuan Shehee, in violation of La. 14:30.1. Found guilty by a unanimous jury, Jones was sentenced to life imprisonment without the benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence. He now appeals his conviction and sentence. We affirm.
After several weeks of ongoing tensions and disputes in Ringgold, Louisiana, Lentone Jones went to LeJuan Shehee's house allegedly to settle the dispute. The two men exchanged heated words and agreed to a physical fight. When Shehee turned his back on Jones to remove his shirt for the impending brawl, Jones shot him. Shehee attempted to run, but tripped and fell, whereupon Jones stood over him and fired three more shots into his body.
Shehee's relatives and friends, who witnessed the event, frantically drove him to the nearest ambulance. While paramedics attempted to save the victim's life, Jones turned himself in. Ultimately, Shehee succumbed to his wounds.
As noted, a Bienville Parish grand jury indicted Jones for second degree murder, La. R.S. 14:30.1. A unanimous jury convicted him as charged. After his motions for new trial and post verdict judgment of acquittal were denied, Jones waived sentencing delays and the court sentenced him to the mandatory life term at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence. This appeal followed.
By his first assignment of error, Jones contends the evidence was insufficient to prove he was guilty of second degree murder beyond a reasonable doubt. Specifically, Jones argues that he should have been convicted of manslaughter because the murder was committed in heat of blood and sudden passion. For three weeks preceding the shooting, Shehee had been in skirmishes with the defendant's sister and her friend, Stacy Thomas, with no police intervention. After numerous threatening text messages, Jones went to confront Shehee, and he was faced with a large, hostile crowd which had previously threatened him. He asserts that incident as the reason he drew his weapon and fired. Jones contends that sufficient provocation existed to reduce the charge of second degree murder to manslaughter.
The state argues it established the essential elements of second degree murder beyond a reasonable doubt, and that the evidence presented by the defense was insufficient to support a reduced finding of manslaughter.
The standard of appellate review for a sufficiency of the evidence claim is whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S. Ct. 2781, 2789, 61 L. Ed. 2d 560 (1979); State v. Tate, 2001-1658 (La. 5/20/03), 851 So. 2d 921, cert. denied, 541 U.S. 905, 124 S. Ct. 1604, 158 L. Ed. 2d 248 (2004). This standard, now legislatively embodied in La. C. Cr. P. art. 821, does not provide the appellate court witha vehicle to substitute its own appreciation of the evidence for that of the fact finder. State v. Pigford, 2005-0477 (La. 2/22/06), 922 So. 2d 517; State v. Robertson, 96-1048 (La. 10/4/96), 680 So. 2d 1165. The appellate court does not assess the credibility of witnesses or reweigh evidence. State v. Smith, 94-3116 (La. 10/16/95), 661 So. 2d 442. A reviewing court accords great deference to a jury's decision to accept or reject the testimony of a witness in whole or in part. State v. Gilliam, 36, 118 (La. App. 2 Cir. 8/30/02), 827 So. 2d 508, writ denied, 2002-3090 (La. 11/13/03), 858 So. 2d 422.
The trier of fact is charged to make a credibility determination and may, within the bounds of rationality, accept or reject the testimony of any witness; the reviewing court may impinge on that discretion only to the extent necessary to guarantee the fundamental due process of law. State v. Casey, 99-0023 (La. 1/26/00), 775 So. 2d 1022, cert. denied, 531 U.S. 840, 121 S. Ct. 104, 148 L. Ed. 2d 62 (2000).
In the absence of internal contradiction or irreconcilable conflict with physical evidence, as is the case here, the testimony of state witnesses, obviously believed by the trier of fact, is sufficient support for a requisite factual conclusion. State v. Wiltcher, 41, 981 (La. App. 2 Cir. 5/9/07), 956 So. 2d 769; State v. Burd, 40, 480 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1/27/06), 921 So. 2d 219, writ denied, 2006-1083 (La. 11/9/06), 941 So. 2d 35.
Second degree murder is the killing of a human being when the offender has a specific intent to kill or to inflict great bodily harm. La. R.S. 14:30.1. Specific intent is that state of mind that exists when thecircumstances indicate the offender actively desired the prescribed criminal consequences to follow his act or failure to act. La. R.S. 14:10(1); State v. Lindsey, 543 So. 2d 886 (La. 1989), cert. denied, 494 U.S. 1074, 110 S. Ct. 1796, 108 L. Ed. 2d 798 (1990); State v. Davies, 35, 783 (La. App. 2 Cir. 4/05/02), 813 So. 2d 1262, writ denied, 2002-1564 (La. 5/9/03), 843 So. 2d 389. Specific intent may be inferred from the circumstances surrounding the offense and the conduct of the defendant. La. R.S. 14:10(1); State v. Draughn, 2005-1825 (La. 01/17/07), 950 So. 2d 583, cert. denied, 128 S. Ct. 537, 169 L. Ed. 2d 377.
The determination of whether the requisite intent is present in a criminal case is made by the trier of fact. State v. Huizar, 414 So. 2d 741 (La. 1982). In reviewing the correctness of such a determination, the court should review the evidence in a light most favorable to the prosecution and must determine if the evidence is sufficient to convince a reasonable trier of fact of the guilt of the defendant beyond a reasonable doubt as to every element of the offense. Jackson v. Virginia, supra; State v. Huizar, supra.
The discharge of a firearm at close range and aimed at a person is indicative of a specific intent to kill or inflict great bodily harm upon that person. State v. Seals, 95-0305 (La. 11/25/96), 684 So. 2d 368, cert. denied, 520 U.S. 1199, 117 S. Ct. 1558, 137 L. Ed. 2d 705 (1997); State v. Dooley, 38, 763 (La. App. 2 Cir. 9/22/04), 882 So. 2d 731, writ denied, 2004-2645 (La. 2/18/05), 896 So. 2d 30; State v. Brooks, 36, 855 (La. App. 2 Cir. 3/05/03), 839 So. 2d 1075, writ denied, 2003-0974 (La. 11/07/03), 857 So. 2d 517. La. R.S. 14:31 defines manslaughter as:
A homicide which would be murder under either Article 30 (first degree murder) or Article 30.1 (second degree murder), but the offense is committed in sudden passion or heat of blood immediately caused by provocation sufficient to deprive an average person of his self-control and cool reflection. Provocation shall not reduce a homicide to manslaughter if the jury finds that the offender's blood had actually cooled, or that an average person's blood would have cooled, at the time the offense was committed.
The Louisiana Supreme Court, in State v. Lombard, 486 So. 2d 106 (La. 1986), explained the distinction between manslaughter and murder:
[T]he presence of "sudden passion" or "heat of blood" distinguishes manslaughter from murder. The court has stated on several occasions, however, that "sudden passion" and "heat of blood" are not elements of the offense of manslaughter; rather, they are mitigatory factors in the nature of a defense which exhibit a degree of culpability less than that present when the homicide is committed without them. State v. Tompkins, 430 So. 2d 644 (La. 1981); State v. Temple, 394 So. 2d 259 (La. 1981); State v. Peterson, 290 So. 2d 307 (La. 1974). Since they are mitigatory factors, a defendant who establishes by a preponderance of the evidence that he acted in a "sudden passion" or "heat of blood" is entitled to a manslaughter verdict. Where such proof has been introduced, a second degree murder verdict is inappropriate.
In State v. Brooks, supra, we explained what acts do not constitute provocation. We stated:
Provocation is a question of fact to be determined by the trier of fact.... Provocative acts held to rise to the level of mitigating conduct have involved physical threats or actions on the part of the victim. See State v. Lombard, supra, and State v. Ruff, 504 So. 2d 72 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1987), writs denied, 508 So. 2d 64 and 65 (La. 1987). Moreover, our courts have not derogated from the principle that "mere words or gestures, however offensive or insulting, will not reduce homicide from murder to manslaughter." State v. Massey, 535 So. 2d 1135 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1988); State v. Conerly, 48 La. Ann. 1561, 21 So. 192 (La. 1896).
After viewing the instant evidence under the Jackson standard, wehold that the evidence is sufficient to support every element of second degree murder. Following the shooting and after being given his Miranda rights, Jones confessed to Officer Randy Price in a recorded confession that was played for the jury in its entirety. Testifying witnesses Darrell Arrington, Lamont Arrington, Keenan Johnson, Dominque Hullaby and Ursula Scott all identified the defendant as the man who shot the victim. The defendant's statement and the eyewitnesses' testimony established that he shot the victim at close range, which is sufficient to prove his specific intent to kill or inflict great bodily harm. State v. Seals, supra; State v. Dooley, supra; State v. Brooks, supra. There is also physical evidence that the victim died from the gunshot wounds. It was up to the trier of fact to make a credibility determination and weigh the evidence.
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